Now that I am training for IronMan, I fully understand how time consuming it is and how it takes such a focus in one's life. I really have great respect anyone who trains for IronMan, but I have more respect for their partners who support them in their IronMan quest.
Becoming an IronMan is not the partners dream or goal, and they don't get to experience the elation of running the last 100m to recieve the crowds cheers and adulation before the line is crossed and the goal is achieved.....IronMan !
BUT partners also invest their "together time with you" in their partners quest, they also wake early, invest their emotion in your goal, probably rub cream on your legs, cook the foods you need, wash your sweaty clothes and sticky water bottles and generally support you in any way they can........
Partners of IronMen in training; you have my deepest respect.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
dreams and problem solving..... in Africa
I have never been keen on being in cold water, and the sharks in Cape Town are way too hungry...... so I have always loved swimming at Durban's warm beaches.......so when a work trip to Durban was neccessary, the first thing I thought was "yaaahooo, warm, open water training swims"!
I was looking forward......but when the alarm went off at 5-15 am and I looked down from my 11th floor window, my perspective suddenly changed. The sea was rough, the distance I planned to swim looked far and how was I going to get down the lift, through the lobby and onto the beach.....in my speedo!? Or should I wear my wetsuit!? Whatever my faults, being an exhibitionist is
not one of them.As with all big problems, the only way to solve them is to break them down into small 'bites'. Wetsuit? I decided that although I was very keen to try my new wetsuit in the sea, the water was pabably going to be warm anyway. The lift and lobby. I decided to wear a old t-shirt that I had with me and wrap a towel around me. I asked the 'concierge' (I use that term loosely in Africa) to hold my key.
At the beach, I rolled my t-shirt into the towel so it would get full of sand from the wind that was blowing and entered the surf. The water was great and I fought my way through waves for 16 minutes before I decided that an IronMan swim will never be this rough. On my way out, I saw a "no swimming" sign! "Oh well, if that's their attitude, I'll swim somewhere else tomorrow!"
Now lets get that t-shirt and head off for that big hotel breakfast...... where is my towel? I had thought it was quite near to where those guys are digging a big hole with a spade in the middle of the beach.......at 5-55 am !!? Hey, one of them is wearing my bloody t-shirt!!
"Can I have my t-shirt please?" And I looked him straight in the eye...."Oh is this yours? I didn't know whose it was." yeah right, well that justifies your theft then" I thought.
..... and this is my towel I said, picking it up from their belongings ........
Walking away, I thought it was a story worth telling anyway..... *smile*
Africa......one should never be amazed..... anything is possible in Africa!
Its amazing how we adapt to our surroundings. Two mornings later, I walked confidently through the lobby in my speedo (only), handed the guy at the reception my towel and room key, then walked to Bay of Plenty. This part was really cool - at 6 am on a Friday morning, the Durban beach front is full of surfers, swimmers, runners, cyclists, triathletes, paddlers......some chatting, drinking coffee, others training....I was in my own ubculture where a guy in a speedo at 6 am isn't even noticed...my kinda town! *smile*
Suddenly I noticed that the other swimmers had fins. I thought "do they know something about currents that I don't?". At this point I was so looking forward to my swim, that I decided that they were just weaker swimmers (probably incorrect, but you ot to use your mind to help you achieve your goals!)
That was a great decision...because I had the most amazing swim from Bay of Plenty around the piers and back in tho the beach at The Wedge (what a cool name for a beach). I swam a distance of about 1km, in warm, gentle swell surf......and all before work - after that, there was no way that I could have a bad day!
...and I found out what my t-shirt guys were digging the hole for.....to earn money from sand scultures - see pics below...
Africa has some amazing highlights.....
amazing! 
Cheetah? 
No, those are not the coins that I donated, but I did pay the guys for these pics....
True, but there are always exceptions!?? >>>>
Sunday, January 13, 2008
belief and faith
Following on from '...its all in our heads', todays incident highlighted faith, belief and ..... let me explain....
The dictionary defines faith as 'trust or confidence' (in the unseen), belief is 'to judge or the to have faith'. What we need to constantly be aware of is that both are choices; conscious, deliberate choices.
I did a cycle race this morning as part of my training. It was extremely windy and I was on my way to Cape Point, where I knew that I'd need to sanctuary of as big a group as possible. (by riding in a group, one can save up to 30% of your energy; which is why it is not allowed in IronMan). I was riding really well and had ridden away from the last big group, and was now riding with a small group of 5 other riders who were going really well too, I believed that they would help me to find the next big group up ahead, but I could not see a big group around all the curves in the road. Then I hit a bad patch; my legs suddenly felt like I had attached a couple of bricks to my feet.
I had a choice ; hang in through the pain, with this group 'in faith' that they would help me find that elusive big group that I was looking for, and then rest; or, drop off and pedal lightly through the pain, while my legs came back.
I chose the latter; then after about 3 minutes around a bend in the road, I saw that big group ahead! If I had stayed with my small group through the pain, I would have been with the big group in 10 minutes! But now I was alone pedalling into that headwind. And this thought became very vivid; before my legs went bad, I believed that my little group would help me to find the big group, then I lost faith in that in that, I let the pain in my legs affect my choice, I had suddenly become subconsciously negative! And now I had to pay, big time! It took me 40 minutes to catch that group by myself (instead of 10 minutes!).
On the positive side, I had 40 minutes to reflect on my poor decision. And my conclusion; we have to choose to believe that what we are doing will move us forward in whatever we are doing, and as difficulties challenge us, we must have faith that our initial choice was right, be aware that beliefs and faith are positive conscious choices. This one negative thought cost me 30 minutes of self induced pain! Just a reminder; negative thinking is just simply, not an option!
And as I type this, I think that this is actually what this blog is about; I have chosen to believe that it is going to help someone, maybe only me, but its a step forward.... to what? I have faith that it will lead somewhere....
The dictionary defines faith as 'trust or confidence' (in the unseen), belief is 'to judge or the to have faith'. What we need to constantly be aware of is that both are choices; conscious, deliberate choices.
I did a cycle race this morning as part of my training. It was extremely windy and I was on my way to Cape Point, where I knew that I'd need to sanctuary of as big a group as possible. (by riding in a group, one can save up to 30% of your energy; which is why it is not allowed in IronMan). I was riding really well and had ridden away from the last big group, and was now riding with a small group of 5 other riders who were going really well too, I believed that they would help me to find the next big group up ahead, but I could not see a big group around all the curves in the road. Then I hit a bad patch; my legs suddenly felt like I had attached a couple of bricks to my feet.
I had a choice ; hang in through the pain, with this group 'in faith' that they would help me find that elusive big group that I was looking for, and then rest; or, drop off and pedal lightly through the pain, while my legs came back.
I chose the latter; then after about 3 minutes around a bend in the road, I saw that big group ahead! If I had stayed with my small group through the pain, I would have been with the big group in 10 minutes! But now I was alone pedalling into that headwind. And this thought became very vivid; before my legs went bad, I believed that my little group would help me to find the big group, then I lost faith in that in that, I let the pain in my legs affect my choice, I had suddenly become subconsciously negative! And now I had to pay, big time! It took me 40 minutes to catch that group by myself (instead of 10 minutes!).
On the positive side, I had 40 minutes to reflect on my poor decision. And my conclusion; we have to choose to believe that what we are doing will move us forward in whatever we are doing, and as difficulties challenge us, we must have faith that our initial choice was right, be aware that beliefs and faith are positive conscious choices. This one negative thought cost me 30 minutes of self induced pain! Just a reminder; negative thinking is just simply, not an option!
And as I type this, I think that this is actually what this blog is about; I have chosen to believe that it is going to help someone, maybe only me, but its a step forward.... to what? I have faith that it will lead somewhere....
Thursday, January 10, 2008
its all in our heads....
I am consumed by the fact that I believe that most of this challenging race is in my head - yes, obviously I need the discipline and the required amount of training - as it is in life where specific skills are required to complete certain tasks, but so much of one's success in this life is in your own head. How you percieve certain situations - fearing or thriving in a situation, determines your success with that situation.
If I view IronMan as "phew, thats a long distance", that perspective will affect my training and race result. When I first started running; running 2 minutes, then walking 2 minutes, running again, walking..... I dreamed of being able to run 5 km (3 miles) without walking, now I wonder if my 8 km run would not have been more beneficial if it was 10 km instead! I also don' t run less than 8km as I don't think that it will benefit my fitness. My mindset changed .... my reality has grown. The distance still measures the same, but my perspective, my mind has changed.
I am reading 'The Triathletes guide to Mental Training' and I was actually surprised to read that the top athletes also feel tired, feel pain, get demotivated - the difference (apart from the obvious athletic ability) is the way that they respond to and manage these problems. I remember reading how a mountaineer, after climbing Everest, wrote "you don't conquer Everest, you conquer yourself by climbing Everest. You conquer your fears, you conquer your self belief, you conquer your own limitations". That always stuck with me.
I cannot help believing that a huge portion of the time that I take on race day can be attributed to my self talk - is it positive or negative, can I overcome the pain in my body, the tiredness that I will feel, with my mind.
An old cliche, but "you can achieve what you can believe", is so much more exciting when its taken out of the 'theory file' and is applied to a meaningful goal, like IronMan.
How I respond to the pain,tiredness and other challenges that face me on race day could make a difference of hours on the day. 3 hours is 17% of the race time it could be the difference between 17 hours and 14 hours, or worse still; doing all he training and competing but missing the cut-off and not being able to finish. 17% is all in my mind..... if you were aiming to lose weight, could ou imagine losing 17%? Could you imagine earning 17% more? Getting 17% higher mark on your next test? ....its all in our heads.......
If I view IronMan as "phew, thats a long distance", that perspective will affect my training and race result. When I first started running; running 2 minutes, then walking 2 minutes, running again, walking..... I dreamed of being able to run 5 km (3 miles) without walking, now I wonder if my 8 km run would not have been more beneficial if it was 10 km instead! I also don' t run less than 8km as I don't think that it will benefit my fitness. My mindset changed .... my reality has grown. The distance still measures the same, but my perspective, my mind has changed.
I am reading 'The Triathletes guide to Mental Training' and I was actually surprised to read that the top athletes also feel tired, feel pain, get demotivated - the difference (apart from the obvious athletic ability) is the way that they respond to and manage these problems. I remember reading how a mountaineer, after climbing Everest, wrote "you don't conquer Everest, you conquer yourself by climbing Everest. You conquer your fears, you conquer your self belief, you conquer your own limitations". That always stuck with me.
I cannot help believing that a huge portion of the time that I take on race day can be attributed to my self talk - is it positive or negative, can I overcome the pain in my body, the tiredness that I will feel, with my mind.
An old cliche, but "you can achieve what you can believe", is so much more exciting when its taken out of the 'theory file' and is applied to a meaningful goal, like IronMan.
How I respond to the pain,tiredness and other challenges that face me on race day could make a difference of hours on the day. 3 hours is 17% of the race time it could be the difference between 17 hours and 14 hours, or worse still; doing all he training and competing but missing the cut-off and not being able to finish. 17% is all in my mind..... if you were aiming to lose weight, could ou imagine losing 17%? Could you imagine earning 17% more? Getting 17% higher mark on your next test? ....its all in our heads.......
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
...so what is IronMan? ...and why?
IronMan is an ultra distance endurance triathlon. It starts with a 3.8 km (2,4 mile) swim, followed by a 180 km (112 mile) cycle, then finishes with a 42,2 km (26.2 mile) marathon run. Competitors have 17 hours to complete the course - from 7 am to 12 midnight. There are also various time cut-offs along the route.
IronMan boasts the reputation for being the toughest 1 day endurance event that a person can complete. Number of entries are usually limited to about 2,000 entries, but generally less than 2,000 people attempt the challenge.
Training for IronMan is all consuming, with a competitor training in swimming, cycling and running. They will train about 25 hours a week (7 days at 16 'awake' hours per day = 112 hours, making training 22% of awake hours). If 40 % is work hours and you add in exercise warm-up, cool-down, travel - to work and training, preparing meals to take to the office, packing gym bags, stretching, wetsuit washing, bike maintainance, meals and family and social time; then you understand the time demands.
So, why do I want to do it? The challenge! The excitement! Everyday I have to juggle time, solve time and time schedule problems, maintain discipline in training, nutrition and sleep. I have training variety and all-body fitness, I set goals, I achieve goals, I need to remotivate myself after missing a goal...... I am alive, under my own pressure and feeling challenged. I have a dream that I am working toward. I am out of my comfort zone, learning, growing, learning about myself, testing my limits, exceeding my limits.... everyday is exciting and new. If you prefer routine and staying to what you already know; I suggest that you stay at your desk after everyone left the office! :-)
And as my brother told me last night, "after you have completed an IronMan, you know that you can do anything"
IronMan boasts the reputation for being the toughest 1 day endurance event that a person can complete. Number of entries are usually limited to about 2,000 entries, but generally less than 2,000 people attempt the challenge.
Training for IronMan is all consuming, with a competitor training in swimming, cycling and running. They will train about 25 hours a week (7 days at 16 'awake' hours per day = 112 hours, making training 22% of awake hours). If 40 % is work hours and you add in exercise warm-up, cool-down, travel - to work and training, preparing meals to take to the office, packing gym bags, stretching, wetsuit washing, bike maintainance, meals and family and social time; then you understand the time demands.
So, why do I want to do it? The challenge! The excitement! Everyday I have to juggle time, solve time and time schedule problems, maintain discipline in training, nutrition and sleep. I have training variety and all-body fitness, I set goals, I achieve goals, I need to remotivate myself after missing a goal...... I am alive, under my own pressure and feeling challenged. I have a dream that I am working toward. I am out of my comfort zone, learning, growing, learning about myself, testing my limits, exceeding my limits.... everyday is exciting and new. If you prefer routine and staying to what you already know; I suggest that you stay at your desk after everyone left the office! :-)
And as my brother told me last night, "after you have completed an IronMan, you know that you can do anything"
Monday, January 7, 2008
decisions....
Funny thing decisions, we agonise over "should we...?", "shouldn't we...?", "what are our options...?", "what happens if...?" .......
This morning on my way to work, three blocks from my quiet suburban home, I passed 3 security vans and a police van, all still with alarming blue lights circling, with a criminal handcuffed to a lamp post like a trophy for all to see. I wondered if he was he caught hijacking a vehicle, stealing, murdering or raping? I don't know, and while I have always been aware of that one's life can be changed badly forever in a split second by the crime in South Africa, it was not pleasant being reminded of this so ividly on a Monday morning. So, did this prompt my decision making? Probably. It's amazing how all the things that you learn in your life and all the experiences that you have, all seem to come together at a particular point in time.
So, with that little background, I made three decisions, all that have been pending for a while, duing a short 40 minute run tonite. And now that I have made them, I wonder why I didn't make them earlier!
Firstly, I decided that I needed to start this blog.... and no, I am not a techy, I have never even contributed to a blog before.....but hey, that's what this blog, and life, are all about.....learning new things and growing. Imagine if your that tree that you planted didn't grow, or your daughter didn't grow? You would be very concerned! Yet we pay so little attention to our own growth as people....
Secondly, I must fax my entry to IronMan South Africa. As Shaun said "You just gotta commit, then go for it". (I have been 'training toward IronMan' because I just was not sure if I could finish it). We all know that Shaun is correct !
Thirdly, now that I have committed, I need to share this dream with my family. I am very fortunate to be part of a loving, supportive and close family and I know that my parents, my brother Andrew and 'sister' Traci (who my brother wisely chose to fall in love with and marry), will want to share this journey with me. And I can really use their support! My brother Andrew has completed two IronMan triathlons, but I was unfortunately not able to support him because he moved from South Africa to New Zealand 11 years ago.
So through this blog I hope to keep my eye on the big picture - sharing lifes lessons and enjoyment with you while I train for my first IronMan; so far everything that I have learned about life seems to condense into very day of training. I hope that through sharing my journey that even if I can can inspire, teach what I have learned, and / or amuse just one person, I will feel that this blog added to someones life, just as many people have added to mine...... Actually, I don't believe anyone inspires anyone else, thy just nurture a seed that is already in you and give you the belief that what you are dreaming can be done.
I just want to offer you something positive that you can use to improve your life.
This morning on my way to work, three blocks from my quiet suburban home, I passed 3 security vans and a police van, all still with alarming blue lights circling, with a criminal handcuffed to a lamp post like a trophy for all to see. I wondered if he was he caught hijacking a vehicle, stealing, murdering or raping? I don't know, and while I have always been aware of that one's life can be changed badly forever in a split second by the crime in South Africa, it was not pleasant being reminded of this so ividly on a Monday morning. So, did this prompt my decision making? Probably. It's amazing how all the things that you learn in your life and all the experiences that you have, all seem to come together at a particular point in time.
So, with that little background, I made three decisions, all that have been pending for a while, duing a short 40 minute run tonite. And now that I have made them, I wonder why I didn't make them earlier!
Firstly, I decided that I needed to start this blog.... and no, I am not a techy, I have never even contributed to a blog before.....but hey, that's what this blog, and life, are all about.....learning new things and growing. Imagine if your that tree that you planted didn't grow, or your daughter didn't grow? You would be very concerned! Yet we pay so little attention to our own growth as people....
Secondly, I must fax my entry to IronMan South Africa. As Shaun said "You just gotta commit, then go for it". (I have been 'training toward IronMan' because I just was not sure if I could finish it). We all know that Shaun is correct !
Thirdly, now that I have committed, I need to share this dream with my family. I am very fortunate to be part of a loving, supportive and close family and I know that my parents, my brother Andrew and 'sister' Traci (who my brother wisely chose to fall in love with and marry), will want to share this journey with me. And I can really use their support! My brother Andrew has completed two IronMan triathlons, but I was unfortunately not able to support him because he moved from South Africa to New Zealand 11 years ago.
So through this blog I hope to keep my eye on the big picture - sharing lifes lessons and enjoyment with you while I train for my first IronMan; so far everything that I have learned about life seems to condense into very day of training. I hope that through sharing my journey that even if I can can inspire, teach what I have learned, and / or amuse just one person, I will feel that this blog added to someones life, just as many people have added to mine...... Actually, I don't believe anyone inspires anyone else, thy just nurture a seed that is already in you and give you the belief that what you are dreaming can be done.
I just want to offer you something positive that you can use to improve your life.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
